Under the plan, consumers would pay 7 cents for each plastic bag they use to carry their purchases from Memphis retailers sized 2,000 square feet or greater.

"This isn’t about revenue to the city of Memphis, this is about sustainability and protecting our waterways," City Council chairman Berlin Boyd said Tuesday, pitching the plastic bag tax during the council's public works, transportation and general services committee.

Boyd highlighted Washington D.C. and Chicago, where plastic bag taxes have resulted in significant declines in their use, while generating millions of dollars in revenue for the cities.

The Memphis bag tax proposal would funnel 2 cents to the grocers as a handling fee, while the city would pull in the other 5 cents per bag. People age 65 and older, and those who use Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits or other public assistance, would be exempt, Boyd said.

People could avoid the tax by shopping with reusable bags, Boyd said.

"It’s easy," Boyd said. "Just grab a bag out of your car and take it into the store. You don’t have to pay the fee."

It's difficult to pinpoint potential savings in Memphis without knowing how many consumers would change their shopping behavior with a new tax and forgo plastic bags. Boyd said Memphis could garner revenue on the lower end of what Chicago has seen — roughly $5 million annually.

City taxpayers are currently paying for the clean up and disposal of plastic bags that end up littered on the ground, in the water or in trees, Boyd said.

"Any time we increase taxes, I have a lot of hesitation," Councilman Worth Morgan said. "There needs to be a lot of thoughtful deliberation around this."

Boyd’s colleagues at Tuesday’s committee meeting asked to seek the input of grocers as talks about the new tax proposal continue at City Hall.

"I know the moment this passes, my family will go to paper or reusable," Councilman Frank Colvett Jr. said. "I’ve just never thought to ask — is plastic cheaper than paper? Is it stronger than paper?"

Jamie Munks covers Memphis city government and politics for The Commercial Appeal. She can be reached at 901-529-2536, jamie.munks@commercialappeal.com or on Twitter @journo_jamie_.